Blogging and Comments
Earlier this week I received an interesting email from a fellow Search Engine Marketer (whom will remain nameless) that didn't agree with my review over his / her involvement at the recent Chicago SES show 2 weeks ago. Now normally I wouldn't have wasted my time with responding to such an email (that's what comment sections are for), but considering the individual and what had seemed to have been misunderstood I wanted to further clarify myself.
Per the sender's request, I will not publish the original email sent to me (I'm not sure that I would anyway... my Blog is not about bashing others), but you should have no problems with getting a general idea of what was emailed by reading my response. With that, I responded with the following statements:
So the question becomes... was I in the wrong? Regardless of this person's status in our industry, had I really crossed the line by posting my opinion?"Thank you for your email. I would like to state that it was not my goal to offend you, or any other speaker for that matter, with my opinions and commentary and I apologize if I did so in anyway. I am in full agreement that you are very good at what it is you do and that you are well educated and experienced in search engine marketing. I definitely don't question that nor do I believe anyone else in our industry does.
As I said in my post, I felt that your presentation was enjoyable and informative... and truthfully it was. My only criticism is that you came off as being arrogant. I have sat in at this particular session at least 5 different times and with each instance it seemed as though you were talking down to the audience, whether you meant to or not. In fact, I am not the only one who feels this way. I have conversed with several attendees (both first time and veteran SES attendees) and several have agreed with me on this.
You may take my comments for what they are... constructive criticism or you may choose to ignore them. In either case, my opinion is just that... my opinion. Those who read my Blog do so because they enjoy the way in which I review over industry tools, strategies, resources, conferences, and other SEO happenings. With that, I will continue to
publish my thoughts in similar fashion."
To answer my own questions... No! I was not. As I mentioned in my response, this is my Blog and those who read my commentary do so because they enjoy the way in which I post. If they didn't, I wouldn't imagine that they'd still be tuning in. And even so... if I had no readers due to the fact that my opinions were seen as off-based or just outrageously stupid, I would still have every right to post them how I saw fit.
In most cases, I Blog on whatever it is that occupies my mind come Friday morning. Whether I agree or disagree with an idea is my opinion. Whether or not I think a person's SES presentation was good, bad, or simply made he or she appear arrogant is again my opinion. I have a right to my opinion and encourage you all to voice yours.
If you should have an opinion over any of the topics I Blog about (regardless if you agree with me or not) please feel free to post it. I would very much enjoy reading why you feel the way you do towards the topic at hand. At the same time, I would appreciate it very much if everyone refrained from questioning my commentary or my right to post it.
The floor is yours!
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posted by Karl Ribas Friday, December 23, 2005 Read Comments (1) | Post a Comment | Subscribe  
 
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1 Comments:
I agree that a person who chooses to start a blog has the right to voice their own opinion. In fact, is that not the sole purpose of a blog? Is it not an outlet for one's own opinion? If I'm looking for strictly facts, I will not hesitate to consult a well known source of proven factual information in addition to top trusted industry bloggers. However, I am in complete agreement with this weeks post and as a loyal reader for months now, I for one, look forward to your commentary on issues facing the SEM industry today. Your articles are very informative and helpful and in fact, I wish you would write more! But like your introduction says, "no crap, no favors, and no nonsense."
I like-uh the country!
By
Jess, at December 23, 2005 3:26 PM
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